Bologna city guide: what to see
The opening of a foodie theme park will further elevate Bologna’s reputation as Italy’s culinary capital but the city has plenty more to offer, including superb art, music and medieval architecture.
Europe’s oldest university town (it was founded in 1088) has been a haven for intellectuals and creative types since luminaries such as Dante and Petrarch passed through in the 14th century. Cultural capitals can ossify with time, but the constant influx of young blood into Bologna has kept the city alive. In the evenings, cafes flood with Bolognesi, from highsociety ladies to stylishly scruffy undergraduates arguing politics and sipping Aperol spritzes. Piazza Verdi attracts musicians and dreadlocked punks, while bars under the arches of Piazza Santo Stefano are a lovely spot for a sundowner. At weekends the central Via Ugo Bassi and Via Rizzoli, along with perpendicular Via dell’Indipendenza, are pedestrianised and fill with shoppers and street performers. At nightfall, crowds from the student bars along Via Zamboni and the more upscale options on Via del Pratello spill into the streets.
Bologna has several nicknames – la dotta (the learned) and la rossa (the red, for its leftwing politics) - but it is la grassa (the fat) that’s perhaps the most fitting. Food is a very big deal here, as it is throughout the Emilia-Romagna region – the home of parma ham, balsamic vinegar and parmesan. Cured meats, aged cheeses, cream, butter, game and truffles abound in this most indulgent of cuisines – and autumn, with its plentiful porcini mushrooms and sweet chestnuts, is a great time of year to visit. Many of Italian cuisine’s heavy hitters – tagliatelle al ragù, mortadella, tortellini, lasagne alla bolognese – originate and are at their finest here. The classics still have pride of place, but in the past few years the range of restaurants has broadened. And next month sees the opening of Fico Eataly World, a long-awaited €100m foodie theme park.
WHAT TO SEE AND DO Eataly World opens on 15 November, with rides, workshops, restaurants, pastures, an orchard and a vineyard for tasting and learning about everything from dairy farming to prosciutto production. There will be tricycles to explore the 20-acre complex, entry is free, the various activities start at €10pp and a hotel will open there next year.
This may be the city’s flashiest culinary attraction, but it’s hardly the only one. For a more personal look at la cucina bolognese, book one of Rita Mattioli’s intimate cooking classes, which feel like a warm, sophisticated dinner party. Whether you’re a novice learning to roll translucent sheets of pasta or trying to reproduce a professional tiramisù, make sure to book well in advance (from €60pp, +39 348 341 0168, bolognawelcome.com).
The Carpigiani Gelato museum
Davide Simoni’s family has run the Salumeria Simoni shop in the city centre for generations, and he leads tours (from €10) peppered with anecdotes about the city’s pork butchers. Those with a sweet tooth may prefer the Carpigiani Gelato museum, which offers sessions for casual ice-cream enthusiasts (€20) and masterclasses (€45). It’s a schlep out of the centre and booking is essential. For a more spontaneous sweet treat, Il Gelatauro on Via San Vitale, Cremeria Funivia off Via Farini and Cremeria Santo Stefano on Via Santo Stefano, south of the centre, all serve sublime scoops.
Shop at the food markets Bologna’s food markets are among the best in Italy: stalls in the Quadrilatero, the centuries-old grid of streets south of Via Rizzoli, are the place to try fine cheeses, at La Baita Vecchia Malga on Via Pescherie Vecchie; pastries, from Paolo Atti & Figli on Via degli Orefici; and anything else, from wine to charcuterie, at Tamburini on Via Caprarie. Pick up your delicacies and head to Osteria del Sole on Vicolo Ranocchi, a raucous bar dating back to 1465, where the wine is cheap and food is BYO.
Bustling Mercato di Mezzo on Via Clavature is great at any time of day for a casual bite, while Mercato delle Erbe, at the western end of Via Ugo Bassi, is where chefs load up on Emilia-Romagna’s premium produce in the mornings. Though the rustic ambiance remains intact, the market now hosts the cool Altro? food hall and occasional live music events.
For slow food straight from the source, head to the weekly Mercato delle Terre on Via Azzo Gardino, in the courtyard of the Cinema Lumière, where more than 40 vendors offer everything from artisanal cheeses to cooking demonstrations.
Art, history and music
Those planning to visit several museums can save money with a Bologna welcome card (from €20).
There’s an impressive collection of works by Giotto, Titian, Raphael and other old masters at the Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna (€6 adult, €3 for 18-25s), plus contemporary art at MAMbo (€4-€6, children free). The latter also houses the Morandi Museum, a tribute to local still-life artist Giorgio Morandi. In the early evening, wing by MAMbo’s bar for a drink and a sumptuous aperitivo spread (€8 with first drink). Museo della Storia di Bologna (€10 adult, €8 19-26s, €6 6-18s) in Palazzo Pepoli has interactive, hi-tech exhibits on Bolognese society through the years. Exhibits are in Italian, but there’s an engaging English-language audio guide. Film fans can journey back to the golden age of Italian film making at the vast library on the history of cinematography at the Cineteca di Bologna art-house theatre (Via Azzo Gardino 65).
No visit to this Unesco world city of music would be incomplete without a stop at the Museo Internazionale e Biblioteca della Musica di Bologna (€3-€5, children free) in the frescoed Palazzo Sanguinetti. Small in size, yet broad in scope, the museum displays an array of historic portraits, documents and more than 80 instruments.
Scale the heights The Santuario della Madonna di San Luca basilica keeps an eye on Bologna from a hill 10km south-west of the centre. It can be reached on the San Luca Express, a tourist “train” running from Piazza Maggiore, but it’s more enjoyable to spend an afternoon trekking the twisting path, with its (supposed) 666 porticos, from Piazza di Porta Saragozza on the western edge of the centre. Scholars believe the demonic number is no coincidence – the final stretch can feel particularly devilish.
Back in the centre, it’s considered bad luck for students to climb le due torri (the two leaning medieval towers in Piazza di Porta Ravegnana that are a symbol of the city) before graduating, but travellers need not fear such superstition. The smaller Torre Garisenda, which leans the furthest of the two, is not open to the public, but the 498 steps to the top of Torre Asinelli (€3-€5) reward climbers with a postcard-perfect vista of the city’s red rooftops.